Jonathan Waxman Gets a Restaurant

Jonathan Waxman, America’s most famous chef without a restaurant, is about to give up his title. He and Stephen Singer, owner of a San Francisco wine shop (and husband of Alice Waters), have begun construction on a new restaurant in the Napa Valley. Located midway between Napa and Yountville on State Highway 29, the restaurant as yet has no name. “Nothing is final yet,” says Waxman. “The only thing I can say is that we’ve put in a foundation and a liquor license has been applied for.” And, says Waxman, they plan to open their restaurant this year.

LEAN McCUISINE: Fast food keeps getting skinnier--two more low-calorie items have just been added to the McDonald’s menu. The Diet Coke Float, 90 calories, costs $1.39 and will be available at participating McDonald’s until July 9. The 275-calorie chicken “faj-rito”--grilled chicken, bell peppers, onions, tomatoes, fajita sauce in a, er, whole-wheat tortilla--also sells for $1.39. So now, instead of ordering the 560-calorie Big Mac, you can get a Diet Coke Float, a “faj-rito,” sneak in an order of fries and still stay thin. . . .

THE EMILY POST SEAL OF APPROVAL: First it was car dealerships and small boutiques--now it’s restaurants. Eat there, and the next thing you know you’re getting a thank-you note. A few days after eating at San Diego’s Pacifica restaurants you will receive a “Dear Customer” letter: “Considering all of the dining choices available in San Diego, we are especially pleased you selected us,” it will say, and then go on to express hopes that the restaurant has “enhanced your dining experience.”

CHANGES: Restaurant Antoine at Le Meridien Newport Beach has a new chef. Jean Pierre Lemanissier, who worked for Jean Bertranou at L’Ermitage and most recently at Gardens restaurant in the Four Seasons Hotel in Los Angeles, plans to offer his new summer menu mid-June. . . . Nowhere Cafe, the vegetarian restaurant with the dancing vegetables mural on Beverly and Fairfax, will open Nowhere Cafe Natural Food Market next door on July 15.